Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration by billions of people around the world. Christmas is associated with church services, Christmas decorations, Christmas Trees, lights, Santa Claus, and so on, and of course Christmas lunch and dinner. Therefore, I have given a few delicious and easy-to-make Christmas dishes which can be made at home with easily available ingredients.
A PERFECT GAMMON RECIPE
Gammon is the meat of a pig’s hind leg. After cooking the meat it becomes ham. You can then glace it with honey mustard glaze or any sticky glaze of your choice. Here I will show you step-by-step how to make this delicious ham.
INGREDIENTS
2½kg boneless uncured gammon joint tied
1 sprig thyme
2 bay leaves
1 fresh rosemary
2 carrots diced
1 onion
1 celery stick
1tbsp black peppercorns
1tsp cloves
1½tbsp English mustard
70g honey
2tbsp soft dark brown sugar
METHOD
In a large pot add onions, thyme, bay leaves, rosemary, carrots, peppercorns and celery.
Now put the gammon in the pot.
Cover the gammon with water. It should be submerged.
Cover the pot and gently simmer for 1½ hours.
Remove from flame and let the gammon cool in the liquid for 30 minutes.
In a small bowl mix the honey, mustard and sugar well.
Now remove the gammon from the liquid and let it cool enough to handle it.
Now carefully with a sharp knife cut out the skin and leave the fat on. Keeping the layer of fat on will prevent the meat from drying up.
Now score the fat in a criss-cross pattern.
Now put the ham on an aluminium foil in a baking tray and brush half the glaze all over it.
The foil prevents the glaze from sticking to the baking tray.
Now roast in a pre-heated oven for 15 minutes at 200°C or 180°C.
Now once again brush the remaining glaze and roast for 20-30 minutes.
Leave to cool for 15 minutes before carving it. You can even cool and chill for four days.
Enjoy it in a sandwich or by itself with a fresh green salad.
ROAST LEG OF LAMB
It seems daunting to make a leg of lamb. In fact, it is quite simple even though time of cooking is slightly long. But once you finish making it and place it at the centre of your Christmas table, your guests will be awed and you will only hear oohs and aahs.
INGREDIENTS
1 leg of lamb (about 2kg) bone in
1½tsp cooking oil
½tsp black pepper
#For the rub
1½tbsp fresh rosemary leaves finely chopped
3 large garlic cloves finely minced
3tbsp olive oil
#For the base for cooking the lamb
2 whole heads of garlic halved horizontally
2 onions halved
1 stick celery
1 carrot diced
A few sprigs of rosemary
#For the gravy
4tbsp plain flour
2½ cups mutton stock
#Accompaniments
Broccoli
Carrots
Peas
Potatoes
METHOD
Take the lamb out at least one hour before making it. Make a few gashes on both sides of the lamb so that the rub penetrates inside.
Mix the oil, garlic and rosemary in a bowl and slather the rub all over the lamb, then sprinkle the salt and pepper all over.
Now place garlic, rosemary, onions, carrots and celery in a baking tray. Place a rack in the baking tray.
Put the lamb over it.
Pour a cup of stock in the tray.
Now in a pre-heated oven roast the lamb at 220°C for 20 minutes. This will get the colour going on the lamb.
Now reduce heat to 200°C and roast for a further one hour or till the lamb is cooked. If you have a meat thermometer it should read 53°C.
Rest the lamb for 20 minutes before carving. During this resting stage, the lamb will finish cooking and the internal temperature will rise to 62°C, which is good for medium rare.
Also during resting, the lamb juices get re-absorbed by the meat fibres so that when you carve the lamb the juices remain in the meat.
In case you want medium then cook the lamb till the temperature shows 58°C.
#Making the gravy
Once you take the lamb out of the roasting pan, put it straight on the stove to heat the fat. Discard rosemary twigs.
You should have at least 4-5tbsp of fat. If not, then add a little butter.
Add flour and stir for one minute to cook it off. It will be like a paste.
Pour the stock, stirring as you go to help dissolve the flour.
Smash the garlic and onions with a potato masher.
Now just simmer for a few minutes until the gravy thickens to your taste, then strain into a bowl, pressing the gravy liquid out of the garlic and onions. Then pour in a gravy jug.
Serve the lamb with crispy roast potatoes, peas and steamed carrots tossed with butter and parsley.
CHRISTMAS ROAST CHICKEN WITH GRAVY
Turkey is usually associated with Christmas. But sometimes it is difficult to procure, especially in India. And also you need a lot of people to eat one. My chicken recipe is prepared in the same way as you would prepare a turkey, the only difference is that it is easy to handle and cooking time too is less. The accompaniments are very important, potato being one of them and rest as per your choice.
INGREDIENTS
1 whole chicken with skin on
Some herbs like parsley, basil (chop them fine and season with some salt and pepper. Put 2tbsp oil
in it and mix well. Keep aside to let it all infuse.)
2 slices of butter (big ones)
1 lemon (put in boiling water to make it hot)
#To prepare the chicken
With your fingers gently loosen the skin of the chicken over the breast and then put the infused oil and herb inside on both sides of the breast. Also slide in the butter slices.
Make a small prick on the hot lemon and put into the cavity of the chicken.
Now tie up the legs with a kitchen thread. Spread the rest of the herb oil all over the chicken.
Take a baking tray and place the chicken in it. Cut two onions in half and put in the tray along with a whole garlic cut into half and half a carrot diced.
Bake in a preheated oven for one hour at 200°C. You can check if it is tender. Otherwise cook for another 10 minutes or so.
Now remove the chicken and let it rest.
Remove the skin of the onions in the baking tray. Mash up the garlic. Put the tray over a flame and add 2tbsp flour. Mix it well with the drippings and onions, etc.
Add ½ cup chicken stock and let it come to a boil. See the kind of thickness you want from the gravy.
Now strain the gravy, mashing the garlic and onions while straining it.
Serve the gravy in a gravy jug along with crispy roast potatoes, baby honey glazed carrots, peas and steamed and sauteed broccoli florets.
CHICKEN / VEG POT PIE
Who does not love a pot pie, especially when it is piping hot, with a great pastry and yummy filling? You can have it with crusty bread or salad or whichever way you want. The main trick lies in making the sauce and cooking the vegetables right.
INGREDIENTS
250g bacon sliced
750g boneless and skinless chicken breast cut into bite-size pieces
200g mushrooms sliced
1tbsp fresh sage chopped (½ if using dried)
1tbsp fresh thyme chopped (½ if using dried)
1tsp cayenne powder
1 cup peas defrosted
1½ cup diced carrots small pieces parboiled 90 per cent
¼tsp nutmeg ground
2tbsp parsley chopped
#For the sauce
170g butter
¾ cup all-purpose flour
1 large onion chopped finely
2 cups chicken stock
2 cups milk. Add more if required
1 cup cream
1 cup shredded cheese
1 sheet puff pastry cut according to the top of your baking dish. It should cover the rim totally so that no gaps are there. You can roll the pastry so that it is not too thick or very thin
2 egg yolks mixed with 1tbsp milk
METHOD
Pre-heat oven to 205°C.
In a deep non-stick pan add bacon and saute till it renders its fat.
Add the chicken and saute until light golden brown and season with salt and pepper.
Add mushrooms and cook until they have released their water.
Add the remaining ingredients and cook for 5 minutes until the water is all evaporated. The mixture should be dry and watery.
#To make the sauce
In a saucepan add the butter and when melted add the onion and cook them until translucent, not brown. Add the flour, mix well, add the stock slowly with a whisk. Add the milk.
Add the cream and cook the sauce at very low heat for 10-15 minutes stirring occasionally. Now add the cheese. Mix well.
#To prepare the dish for the oven
Add the chicken, mushrooms and other vegetables in the sauce and mix well.
Pour in your baking dish and wait at least 15/20 minutes to let the steam out before you put the puff pastry on top.
Brush the rim and little bit of the sides of the baking dish with the egg wash.
Now place the pastry over the baking dish and press the sides of the dough to the bowl so that it sticks and no steam can escape.
Bake until the dough is golden brown; takes about 30 minutes.
NOTE: Vegetarians can skip the bacon and chicken. Instead, add 1tbsp butter to sauté the vegetables. You can also add other vegetables of your choice instead of chicken and bacon.
Instead of yolk just do a milk wash.
LOBSTER THERMIDOR
A very impressive dish and ideal for Christmas. This is a dish of the ‘70s. It was created by the British mainly to impress the royalty and high society. The only daunting part is handling a live lobster. Never buy a dead one.
INGREDIENTS
1 lobster about 1 kg, live
#For the sauce
75g butter plus 2tbsp extra
115g white mushrooms sliced
¼ cup onions finely minced
¼ cup all-purpose flour
2tbsp fresh thyme finely chopped
2 cups hot milk. More in case needed
½ cup white wine (optional)
2tbsp English mustard
½tsp cayenne pepper
115g Swiss cheese (save a lit bit for topping)
3tbsp parmesan cheese
Finely chopped parsley for garnish
METHOD
#For cooking the lobster
Fill a large pot with salted water and bring it to a boil. Kill the lobster by inserting a knife at the back of the head. Quickly insert in the boiling water and cook for about 8 minutes.
Take the lobster out and immerse it at once in ice water to stop the cooking process.
Cut the lobster in half and empty the meat from the body and the claws.
Rinse the empty shell carefully not to break it. Using paper towel pat it dry. Put it in a baking dish ready to fill with sauce.
#For the sauce
Heat 2tbsp of butter, and when hot add the mushrooms, salt and pepper and sauté until all the water has evaporated. Add the lobster pieces and cook for a couple of minutes. Add thyme and white wine and let it reduce until approximately half remains.
In another pan, heat 3tbsp butter, and when hot add onions and cook for 2 minutes. Add the flour to make a roux and cook for a couple of minutes. Cook on low heat for a few minutes. Add milk and mix well. Add mustard, cayenne and cheese. Now add the lobster mixture into this pan and mix well. Adjust seasoning.
Fill each lobster half with the sauce and top with grated cheese.
Bake in a pre-heated oven at 195°C till the cheese becomes golden but not burnt.
Garnish with parsley and serve with sliced boiled eggs, sliced potatoes and a green salad.
Garlic bread also goes well with this dish and is quite filling also.
GINGER COOKIES
Christmas is not complete without something sweet. What better than ginger cookies to munch on when you feel like it. One can make a big batch and store it. It has all the flavours of Christmas.
INGREDIENTS
1½ cup white sugar, divided
¾ cup margarine
1 large egg
¼ cup molasses
2 cups all-purpose flour
2tsp baking soda
1tbsp ground ginger
1tsp ground cinnamon
½tsp salt
METHOD
Preheat oven to 175°C.
Cream together 1 cup sugar and margarine until smooth. Beat in egg and molasses until well blended. Combine flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon and salt. Stir into molasses mixture to form a dough.
Roll dough into 1-inch balls and roll the balls in remaining ½ cup sugar. Place cookies 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. (Cover the baking tray with the cookie sheet.)
Bake in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
The cookies can be stored in an air-tight container.
Durri Bhalla is a cookery expert and author of Indian Bohra Cuisine and Inner Truth To Good Health And Weight Loss. You can find her
@DurriBhallaKitchen on Instagram, Durri’s Kitchen on Facebook and DurriBhalla on YouTube